Discovery of New Isotopes

Using the fusion-evaporation reaction ^{106}Cd(^{58}Ni,4n)^{160}Os and the gas-filled recoil separator SHANS, two new isotopes _{76}^{160}Os and _{74}^{156}W have been identified. The α decay of ^{160}Os, measured with an α-particle energy of 7080(26) keV and a half-life of 201_{-37}^{+58} µs, is assigned to originate from the ground state. The daughter nucleus ^{156}W is a ß^{+} emitter with a half-life of 291_{-61}^{+86} ms. The newly measured α-decay data allow us to derive α-decay reduced widths (δ^{2}) for the N=84 isotones up to osmium (Z=76), which are found to decrease with increasing atomic number above Z=68. The reduction of δ^{2} is interpreted as evidence for the strengthening of the N=82 shell closure toward the proton drip line, supported by the increase of the neutron-shell gaps predicted in theoretical models.

[Application of two kinds of electrophysiological monitoring techniques for the prediction of facial nerve outcomes after vestibular Schwannoma surgery].

Objective: To investigate the application of transcranial facial nerve motor evoked potential (FNMEP) and direct nerve electrical stimulation (DNES) for the prediction of facial nerve function after vestibular schwannoma surgery. Methods: The clinical data of 106 patients who underwent vestibular schwannoma surgery under electrophysiological monitoring of facial nerve between 2017 and 2021 were retrospectively examined, and there were 57 males and 49 females, with a mean age of (51±11) years. Neuroelectrophysiological monitoring was performed in all patients during the operation. After the tumor was removed, FNMEP and DNES were used for electrophysiological evaluation of facial nerve function. The amplitude ratios of FNMEP to baseline (M1) and the brainstem segment to the internal auditory canal segment of DNES (M2) were recorded after the tumor was removed, respectively. The correlation between these two ratios and facial nerve function at 1 day, 1 month and 3 months after the operation were compared. According to the House-Brackmann (HB) scale, Grade Ⅰ-Ⅱ refers to good facial nerve function, and grade Ⅲ-Ⅵ refers to moderate and severe facial nerve dysfunction. Non-parameter Spearman correlation coefficient was used to evaluate the correlation between M1 and M2 and facial nerve function at 1 day, 1 month and 3 months after operation, and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were plotted to verify the diagnostic efficacy of M1 and M2 for predicting the prognosis of postoperative facial nerve function. Results: Among 106 patients, 102 cases (96.3%) underwent total tumor resection, 4 patients (3.7%) underwent subtotal resection, 104 patients (98.1%) had anatomical preservation of facial nerves, and there were no deaths reported. All patients could evoke reliable FNMEP and 2 patients could not evoke DNES in the brainstem segment of the facial nerve. There were 81 (76.4%), 99 (93.4%) and 103 patients (97.2%) with satisfactory function of facial nerve at 1 day, 1 month and 3 months after surgery, respectively. M1 had large absolute values of Spearman correlation coefficient at 1 day (ρ=|-0.648|) and 1 month (ρ=|-0.552|) after surgery (both P<0.001), while M2 showed a greater absolute value of Spearman correlation coefficient at 3 months (ρ=|-0.395|) than that of M1 (ρ=|-0.378|) (P<0.001). Cut-off value of M1 was 0.58 (sensitivity=0.92, specificity=0.64), and that of M2 was 0.36 (sensitivity=0.64, specificity=1.00). Meanwhile, M1<0.58 or M2<0.36 suggested moderate and severe impairment of facial nerve function. Conclusions: Both FNMEP and DNES during vestibular schwannoma surgery can effectively evaluate the postoperative facial nerve function. FNMEP is better than DNES in predicting the early postoperative facial nerve function, but DNES is better for predicting the long-term postoperative facial nerve function.

[Evaluation of the efficacy of TIPS in 27 patients with hepatic sinus obstruction syndrome in the near and medium term].

Objective: intrahepatic portocaval shunt (TIPS) in the treatment of hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (HSOS). Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on 27 patients with HSOS who were treated with TIPS in our center from July 2018 to July 2020. The changes of portal vein pressure (PVP), portal vein pressure gradient (PPG) and liver function were observed, so as to evaluate the efficacy. Paired t test was adopted to evaluate the quantitative parameters, while χ (2) test was used to analyze qualitative parameters, with P < 0.05 as statistical difference. Results: PVP decreased from (4.41 ± 0.18) kPa before shunt to (2.69 ± 0.11) kPa after shunt (t = 82.41, P < 0.001), PPG decreased from (3.23 ± 0.18) kPa before shunt to (1.46 ± 0.23) kPa after shunt (t = 32.41, P < 0.001). The liver function improved significantly after operation. After 24 months of follow-up, 3 patients developed stent restenosis and recanalized after balloon dilation. Three patients developed hepatic encephalopathy, which was improved after drug treatment. One patient underwent liver transplantation due to liver failure. Conclusion: TIPS is effective in the treatment of HSOS in the short and medium term, and can provide time for liver transplantation patients to wait for liver source.

[Pituicytoma: a clinicopathological analysis of twenty-one cases].

Objective: To investigate the clinicopathological features and treatment strategies of pituicytoma. Methods: Twenty-one cases of pituicytoma were collected at the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University and Jinling Hospital, Nanjing, China from 2009 to 2020. The clinical data of 21 pituicytoma patients was retrospectively analyzed, and the relevant literature was reviewed. Results: Twenty-one patients aged 4 to 68 years, including 8 males and 13 females. All patients underwent surgical treatment. Histologically, the tumor was consisted almost entirely of elongate, bipolar spindle cells arranged in a fascicular or storiform pattern. Mitotic figures were rare. Immunohistochemically, tumor cells were diffusely positive for S-100 protein (21/21), vimentin (15/15) and TTF1 (14/14), while they were weakly or focally positive for GFAP (13/16) and EMA (6/12). CKpan was negative in all cases and Ki-67 proliferation index was low (<5%). Among the 18 patients with follow-up, all survived and 2 relapsed after surgery. Conclusions: Pituicytoma is a rare low-grade glioma of the sellar area. It is easily confused with other sellar tumors. Preoperative diagnosis is difficult. It needs to be confirmed by histopathology and immunohistochemistry. Microsurgery is the main treatment method at present.

[Analysis of 53 cases of transjugular liver biopsy].

Objective: To investigate the practicability and safety of transjugular liver biopsy (TJLB). Methods: Data of 53 cases with transjugular liver biopsy from June 2015 to June 2020 were collected. LABS-100 was used in all patients who underwent transjugular liver biopsy. Among them, 45 cases and eight were biopsied via hepatic vein and intrahepatic segment of the inferior vena cava. The surgical indications, related complications, and postoperative pathological diagnosis were analyzed and summarized. Results: TJLB was successful in all patients, with an average of 2.8 punctures per case. Satisfactory liver tissue and histopathological diagnosis was obtained in all patients. Two cases developed a cervical hematoma that was improved spontaneously, and one patient developed an intrahepatic hematoma that was improved after conservative treatment. Conclusion: TJLB is a practical and safe method for patients with contraindications to percutaneous liver biopsy.

[Study on the correlation between PPG and HVPG in patients with portal hypertension].

Objective: To explore the correlation between portal vein pressure gradient (PPG) and hepatic vein pressure gradient (HVPG) in patients with portal hypertension (PHT). Methods: 752 cases with portal hypertension (PHT) who underwent transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) and met the enrollment criteria between January 2016 to December 2019 were analyzed for hepatic vein, inferior vena cava and portal vein pressure. Paired t-test was used for analysis. Pearson correlation test was used to estimate correlation coefficient and coefficient of determination. P<0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results: Wedged hepatic vein pressure (WHVP), portal vein pressure (PVP), correlation coefficient, and coefficient of determination were 27.98±8.95 mmHg, 33.85±7.33 mmHg, 0.329 (P<0.001), and 0.108, respectively. HVPG, PPG,correlation coefficient, and coefficient of determination were 16.84±7.97 mmHg, 25.11±6.95 mmHg (P<0.001), 0.145, and 0.021 (P<0.001), respectively. The difference between HVPG and PPG was greater than 5 mmHg in 524 cases, accounting for 69.7%. The difference between HVPG and PPG was within 5 mmHg or basically equal in 228 cases, accounting for 30.3%. The correlation coefficient between free hepatic venous pressure (FHVP) and inferior vena cava pressure (IVCP) was 0.568 (P<0.001), and the coefficient of determination was 0.323. According to the presence or absence of hepatic venous collaterals after balloon occluded hepatic angiography, they were divided into two groups: 157 (20.9%) cases in the group with hepatic venous collaterals, and 595 (79.1%) cases in the group without hepatic venous collaterals. The parameters of the two groups were compared: WHVP (15.73±3.63) mmHg vs. (31.22±6.90) mmHg, P<0.001; PVP (31.69±8.70) mmHg vs. (34.42±6.81) mmHg, P<0.001; HVPG (7.18±4.40) mmHg vs. (19.40±6.62) mmHg, P<0.001; PPG (24.24±8.11) mmHg vs. (25.34±6.60) mmHg, P<0.001; free hepatic venous pressure (FHVP) (8.58±3.37) mmHg vs. (11.82±5.07) mmHg , P<0.001; inferior vena cava pressure (IVCP) (7.45±3.29) mmHg vs. (9.09±4.14) mmHg, P<0.001. Conclusion: The overall correlation is poor between HVPG and PPG. HVPG of most patients is not an accurate representation of PPG, and the former is lower than the latter. Hepatic venous collateral formation is one of the important reasons for the serious underestimation of HVPG values.

[Orbital Rosai-Dorfman disease: a case report].

A 19-year-old patient with bilateral eyelid swelling for more than 2 years visited the Department of Ophthalmology. Physical examination disclosed a moderately active mass in the upper eyelid and lacrimal gland area in each eye. Orbital MRI showed that the lacrimal glands were significantly enlarged and moved forward in both eyes, and the enlargement was more severe in the left eye. The patient was admitted twice to the hospital for removal of orbital masses and was diagnosed as orbital Rosai-Dorfman disease by histopathological examination. During three months of follow-up, the patient was in good physical condition, and there was no tumor recurrence.

Interleukin-4 Restores Insulin Sensitivity in Insulin-Resistant Osteoblasts by Increasing the Expression of Insulin Receptor Substrate 1.

Obesity and latent inflammation can give rise to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. Here we established an insulin resistance model of osteoblasts to explore the restoration effect of anti-inflammatory interleukin-4 (IL-4) on insulin sensitivity and its mechanism. We found that IL-4 inhibited cell proliferation in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. Insulation resistance significantly reduced the phosphorylation levels of the insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS1; Tyr612), Akt (Ser473), and AS160 (Ser318) proteins. The addition of IL-4 to the insulin resistance model led to a dose-dependent stimulation of the phosphorylation of IRS1, Akt, and AS160. IL-4 fully restored the activation of the insulin cascade in insulin-resistant cells at the concentration of 50 ng/ml. Additionally, IL-4 promoted the expression of IRS1 in a time-dependent manner. We conjecture that IL-4 restores insulin sensitivity in osteoblasts by upregulating the expression of IRS1. It was also found that IL-4 promoted the expression of osteoprotegerin depending on the time of exposure. This effect may play an important role in the regulation of the energy metabolism in the whole body.

[Comparison of residual cement between CAD/CAM customized abutments and stock abutments via digital measurement in vitro].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the residual cement between computer aided design/computer aided manufacturing customized abutments (CCA) and stock abutments (SA), and to evaluate the feasibility of digital measurement for residual cement volume by three-dimensional scanning. METHODS: Twenty master models needed in this study were all taken from one 47-year-old patient with arrested periodontitis, who had already had an implant placed at his right upper central incisor site in the Department of Periodonto-logy, Peking University School and Hospital of Stomatology. After 4 weeks of soft tissue conditioning by means of customized healing abutment, the height of peri-implant soft tissue was measured, from the implant platform to mucosal margin, as 5 mm. Using customized impression coping, the impression was taken and twenty models were fabricated and allocated to 4 groups according to the type of abutments: CCA1 (5 mm transmucosal height CCA, with margin at tissue level), CCA2 (4 mm transmucosal height CCA, with 1 mm submucosal margin), SA1 (3 mm transmucosal height SA, with 2 mm submucosal margin) and SA2 (1 mm transmucosal height SA, with 4 mm submucosal margin). Crowns were cemented to the abutments, which were seated on the working models. Excess cement was removed by a prosthodontic specialist. Thereafter, the volume of residual cement was evaluated by using three-dimensional scanning technique. The area proportion of residual cement was calculated on photographs taken by a single lens reflex camera. The weight of residual cement was weighed by an analytical balance. And the correlation of residual cement volume data with residual cement area proportion or weight of residual cement acquired by traditional methods was analyzed. RESULTS: Residual cement was observed on all the experiment samples. The residual cement volume of CCA was significantly less than that of SA [(0.635 3±0.535 4) mm3 vs. (2.293 8±0.943 8) mm3, P < 0.001]. Consistently, CCA had less residual cement area proportion and weight than those of SA [area proportion: 7.57%±2.99% vs. 22.68%±10.06%, P < 0.001; weight: (0.001 5±0.001 0) g vs. (0.003 7±0.001 4) g, P < 0.001]. The residual cement volume was strongly correlated with the residual cement area proportion and residual cement weight (r>0.75, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: These in vitro results suggest that CCA minimized the residual cement more effectively than SA. The method to digitally evaluate the residual cement volume is feasible, but its validity and reliability need to be further studied.

[Clinical outcomes of ultrasonic subgingival debridement combined with manual root planing in severe periodontitis].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical effects of ultrasonic subgingival debridement and ultrasonic subgingival debridement combined with manual root planing on severe periodontitis and then to investigate the necessity and significance of manual root planing. METHODS: Twenty-three patients with severe periodontitis participated in this split-mouth randomized-controlled clinical trial. Baseline examination and randomization were performed after supragingival scaling: each of the upper and lower jaws had a quadrant as the test group treated with ultrasonic subgingival debridement combined with manual root planing, whereas the other two quadrants were the control group treated with ultrasonic subgingival debridement. Treatment of each patient was at intervals of one week and completed in two visits. Clinical indicators concerning probing depth (PD), clinical attachment loss (CAL) and bleeding index (BI) were recorded at baseline and 1 month, 3 months, 6 months after treatment. RESULTS: There was no significant difference of periodontal indicators between the test group and the control group at baseline. Both the test group and control group resulted in significant improvement of PD, CAL and BI. One and three months after treatment, reduction of PD in the test group was higher than that in the control group [1 month: (2.13±1.31) mm vs. (1.79±1.33) mm, P<0.01; 3 months: (2.46±1.33) mm vs. (2.17±1.38) mm, P<0.01] and reduction of CAL in the test group was higher than that in the control group [1 month: (1.89±2.03) mm vs. (1.65±1.93) mm, P<0.01; 3 months: (2.03±2.05) mm vs. (1.83±1.97) mm, P<0.05]. Six months after treatment, PD in the test group and the control group decreased by (2.52±1.40) mm and (2.35±1.37) mm respectively, and the improvement in the test group was significantly better than that in the control group (P<0.01). CAL in the test group and the control group decreased by (1.89±2.14) mm and (1.77±2.00) mm respectively, and there was no statistical difference between the groups. There was no significant difference in the changes of BI between the two groups 1, 3 and 6 months after treatment. CONCLUSION: Ultrasonic subgingival debridement combined with manual root planing has more reduction in PD and CAL compared with ultrasonic subgingival debridement. Therefore, it is still necessary to use manual instruments for root planing following ultrasonic subgingival debridement.

[Influence of thread shapes of custommade root-analogue implants on stress distribution of peri-implant bone: A three-dimensional finite element analysis].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effects from the thread shapes of custom-made root-analogue implant (RAI) on distributions of von Mises stress around the peri-implant bone. METHODS: Five one-stage RAI three-dimensional finite element (FE) models with different thread shapes (V-shaped design, square design, buttress design, reverse buttress design and none thread design) and congruent bone were created through reverse engineering technology. The data of the five models were imported into the FE analysis software to calculate. A force of 100 N was applied parallelly and of 45° to the implant axis respectively. Analysis was performed to evaluate the von Mises stress distributions at the peri-implant regions with the help of the Ansys 16 software. RESULTS: The von Mises stresses distributed mostly at the implant cervical regions and the tip ends of the threads on the cortical bone under oblique loading, while on the cancellous bone, the stresses concentrated mostly on the implant lateral cervical regions, the tip ends of the threads and the apical regions. When under vertical loading, the von Mises stresses distributed mostly at the implant cervical regions on the cortical bone while at the tip ends of the threads and the lateral apical regions on the cancellous bone. The von Mises stresses were better distributed on the thread groups under both kinds of loadings compared with no thread design. But there was no obvious difference among the different thread groups. The concentrations of the von Mises stresses on the cancellous bone in the thread groups were mostly at the tip ends of the threads while less in the apical area. The von Mises stresses were better distributed on the cancellous bone on the other three thread designs than on square design. CONCLUSION: Thread designs are advocated for the reason that adding thread designs to the RAI standard design will have a positive effect on stress distributions at the peri-implant regions and it will reduce the concentrations of von Mises stresses on the cortical bone. From the standpoint of the stress distribution, V-shaped design, buttress design and reverse buttress design are more suitable for RAI than square design. There is no difference of the distributions of the von Mises stresses in the RAI between different thread designs.

Allospecific Memory B Cell Responses Are Dependent on Autophagy.

Long-lived, donor-reactive memory B cells (Bmems) can produce alloantibodies that mediate transplant injury. Autophagy, an intrinsic mechanism of cell organelle/component recycling, is required for Bmem survival in infectious and model antigen systems, but whether autophagy affects alloreactive Bmem is unknown. We studied mice with an inducible yellow fluorescent protein (YFP) reporter expressed under the activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) promoter active in B cells undergoing germinal center reactions. Up to 12 months after allogeneic sensitization, splenic YFP+ B cells were predominantly IgD- IgM- IgG+ and expressed CD73, CD80, and PD-L2, consistent with Bmems. Labeled cells contained significantly more cells with autophagosomes and more autophagosomes per cell than unlabeled, naïve B cells. To test for a functional link, we quantified alloantibody formation in mice with B cells conditionally deficient in the requisite autophagy gene ATG7. These experiments revealed absent B cell ATG7 (1) prevented B cell autophagy, (2) inhibited secondary alloantibody responses without altering primary alloantibody formation, and (3) diminished frequencies of alloreactive Bmems. Pharmacological autophagy inhibition with 3-methyladenine had similar effects on wild-type mice. Together with new documentation of increased autophagosomes within human Bmems, our data indicate that targeting autophagy has potential for eliminating donor-reactive Bmems in transplant recipients.

Discovery of 4 exonic and 1 intergenic novel susceptibility loci for leprosy.

Seven new risk coding variants have been identified through an exome-wide association study (EWAS), which studied the contributions of protein-coding variants to leprosy susceptibility. But some potential susceptibility loci were not studied in the previous EWAS study because of the project consideration. Seventeen unstudied potential susceptibility loci of the previous EWAS were validated in 3169 cases and 9814 controls in this study. Four disease-associated exonic loci were identified: rs671 in ALDH2 (P = 2.0 × 10-20 , odds ratio [OR] = 1.35), rs13259978 in SLC7A2 (P = 1.74 × 10-8 , OR = 1.28), rs925368 in GIT2 (P = 9.18 × 10-17 , OR = 1.44), and rs75680863 in TCN2 (P = 8.37 × 10-21 , OR = 0.74). Potentially implicating ZFP36L1 as a new susceptibility gene, 1 intergenic single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), rs1465788 (P = 7.81 × 10-6 , OR = 0.88), was also suggested to be associated with leprosy. A luciferase reporter assay showed that the rs1465788 risk allele notably decreased the transcription activity of the flanking sequence. These findings suggest the possible involvement of lipid metabolism, NF-κB homeostasis and macrophage antimicrobial pathways in leprosy pathogenesis.

Prediction of G gene epitopes of viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus and eukaryotic expression of major antigen determinant sequence.

This study aims to express fish Viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV) G main antigen domain by using Bac-to-bac expression system. Using bioinformatics tools, B cell epitope of VHSV G gene was predicted, and G main antigen domain was optimized. GM gene was inserted into pFastBac1 vector, then transferred recombinant plasmid into DH10Bac to get recombinant rBacmid-GM. Obtained shuttle plasmid rBacmid-GM was transfected into sf9 cells. GM expression was examined using by PCR and western-blot. Results indicated that G main antigen domain gene of VHSV was successfully cloned and sequenced which contains 1209 bp. PCR proved that shuttle plasmid rBacmid-GM was constructed correctly. SDS-PAGE electrophoresis analysis detected a band of protein about 45kD in expression product of G gene. Obtained recombinant G protein reacted with VHSV-positive serum that was substantiated by western-blot analysis. In conclusion, the main antigen domain of VHSV G was successfully expressed in the Bac-to-Bac baculovirus system.

[Feasibility of device closure for multiple atrial septal defects using 3D printing and ultrasound-guided intervention technique].

Objective: To investigate the feasibility of trans-catheter closure of multiple atrial septal defects (ASD) monitored by trans-thoracic echocardiography (TTE) under the guidance of 3D printing heart model. Methods: Between April and August 2016, a total of 21 patients (8 male and 13 female) with multiple ASD in Fuwai Hospital of Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences underwent CT scan and 3-dimensional echocardiography for heart disease model produced by 3D printing technique. The best occlusion program was determined through the simulation test on the model. Percutaneous device closure of multiple ASD was performed follow the predetermined program guided by TTE. Clinical follow-up including electrocardiogram and TTE was arranged at 1 month after the procedure. Results: The trans-catheter procedure was successful in all 21 patients using a single atrial septal occluder. Mild residual shunt was found in 5 patient in the immediate postoperative period, 3 of them were disappeared during postoperative follow-up. There was no death, vascular damage, arrhythmia, device migration, thromboembolism, valvular dysfunction during the follow-up period. Conclusion: The use of 3D printing heart model provides a useful reference for transcatheter device closure of multiple ASD achieving through ultrasound-guided intervention technique, which appears to be safe and feasible with good outcomes of short-term follow-up.

Proteomic Characterization Reveals That MMP-3 Correlates With Bronchiolitis Obliterans Syndrome Following Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell and Lung Transplantation.

Improved diagnostic methods are needed for bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS), a serious complication after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) and lung transplantation. For protein candidate discovery, we compared plasma pools from HCT transplantation recipients with BOS at onset (n = 12), pulmonary infection (n = 16), chronic graft-versus-host disease without pulmonary involvement (n = 15) and no chronic complications after HCT (n = 15). Pools were labeled with different tags (isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification), and two software tools identified differentially expressed proteins (≥1.5-fold change). Candidate proteins were further selected using a six-step computational biology approach. The diagnostic value of the lead candidate, matrix metalloproteinase 3 (MMP3), was evaluated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in plasma of a verification cohort (n = 112) with and without BOS following HCT (n = 76) or lung transplantation (n = 36). MMP3 plasma concentrations differed significantly between patients with and without BOS (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve 0.77). Consequently, MMP3 represents a potential noninvasive blood test for diagnosis of BOS.

Bioinformatic analysis based on the complete coding region of the MSTN gene within and among different species.

Myostatin, encoded by the MSTN gene (previously GDF8), is a member of the transforming growth factor-ß superfamily, which normally acts to limit skeletal muscle mass by regulating the number and growth of muscle fibers. In this study, a total of 84 myostatin gene sequences with known complete coding regions (CDS) and corresponding amino acid sequences were analyzed from 17 species, and differentiation within and among species was studied using comparative genomics and bioinformatics. Characteristics of the nucleotide and amino acid sequences were also predicted. The results indicated that a total of 569 polymorphic sites, including 53 singleton variable sites and 516 parsimony informative sites, which could be sorted into 44 haplotypes, were detected from 17 species. Observed genetic diversity was higher among species than within species, and Vulpes lagopus was more polymorphic than other species. There was clear differentiation of the myostatin gene among species and the reconstructed phylogenetic tree was consistent with the NCBI taxonomy. The myostatin gene was 375-aa long in most species, except for Mus musculus (376 aa) and Danio rerio (373 aa). The amino acid sequences of myostatin were deemed hydrophilic, and had theoretical pI values of <7.0, mostly due to the acidic polypeptide. The instability index of the myostatin protein was 40.48-51.63, indicating that the polypeptide is not stable. The G+C content of the CDS nucleotide sequence in different species was 40.60-51.69%. The predicted promoter region of the Ovis aries myostatin gene was 150-220 bp upstream of the start codon.

Genome-wide identification, classification, and expression analysis of sHSP genes in Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa ssp pekinensis).

Small heat shock proteins (sHSPs) are essential for the plant's normal development and stress responses, especially the heat stress response. The information regarding sHSP genes in Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa ssp pekinensis) is sparse, hence we performed a genome-wide analysis to identify sHSP genes in this species. We identified 26 non-redundant sHSP genes distributed on all chromosomes, except chromosome A7, with one additional sHSP gene identified from an expressed sequence tag library. Chinese cabbage was found to contain more sHSP genes than Arabidopsis. The 27 sHSP genes were classified into 11 subfamilies. We identified 22 groups of sHSP syntenic orthologous genes between Chinese cabbage and Arabidopsis. In addition, eight groups of paralogous genes were uncovered in Chinese cabbage. Protein structures of the 27 Chinese cabbage sHSPs were modeled using Phyre2, which revealed that all of them contain several conserved ß strands across different subfamilies. In general, gene structure was conserved within each subfamily between Chinese cabbage and Arabidopsis, except for peroxisome sHSP. Analysis of promoter motifs showed that most sHSP genes contain heat shock elements or variants. We also found that biased gene loss has occurred during the evolution of the sHSP subfamily in Chinese cabbage. Expression analysis indicated that the greatest transcript abundance of most Chinese cabbage sHSP genes was found in siliques and early cotyledon embryos. Thus, genome-wide identification and characterization of sHSP genes is a first and important step in the investigation of sHSPs in Chinese cabbage.

Genome-wide identification, classification, and analysis of heat shock transcription factor family in Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa pekinensis).

Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa ssp. pekinensis) is one of the most important vegetable crops grown worldwide, and various methods exist for selection, propagation, and cultivation. The entire Chinese cabbage genome has been sequenced, and the heat shock transcription factor family (Hsfs) has been found to play a central role in plant growth and development and in the response to biotic and abiotic stress conditions, particularly in acquired thermotolerance. We analyzed heat tolerance mechanisms in Chinese cabbage. In this study, 30 Hsfs were identified from the Chinese cabbage genome database. The classification, phylogenetic reconstruction, chromosome distribution, conserved motifs, expression analysis, and interaction networks of the Hsfs were predicted and analyzed. Thirty BrHsfs were classified into 3 major classes (class A, B, and C) according to their structural characteristics and phylogenetic comparisons, and class A was further subdivided into 8 subclasses. Distribution mapping results showed that Hsf genes were located on 10 Chinese cabbage chromosomes. The expression profile indicated that Hsfs play differential roles in 5 organs in Chinese cabbage, and likely participate in the development of underground parts and regulation of reproductive growth. An orthologous gene interaction network was constructed, and included MBF1C, ROF1, TBP2, CDC2, and HSP70 5 genes, which are closely related to heat stress. Our results contribute to the understanding of the complexity of Hsfs in Chinese cabbage and provide a basis for further functional gene research.

[Effects of Ido1 on mouse decidualization].

Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase 1 (Ido1) is a rate-limiting enzyme which converts the essential amino acid tryptophan to kynurenine. The aim of this study was to investigate the expression and regulation of Ido1 in mouse uterus during decidualization. The results showed that Ido1 mRNA expression gradually increased from day 1 to 4 of pregnancy and reached the peak level on day 4. On days 5-8 of pregnancy, a low level of Ido1 expression was observed in the uteri. Simultaneously, Ido1 mRNA was also lowly expressed in the decidualized uterus and the stromal cells treated with 8-Br-cAMP. Under in vitro decidualization, the expression of Ido1 mRNA gradually declined. Further studies found that overexpression of Ido1 can inhibit the expression of decidualization marker genes PRL, IGFBP1 and Dtprp under in vitro decidualization while inhibition of Ido1 with L-1-MT can induce the expression of these marker genes. Ido1 can prevent uterine stromal cells proliferation and enhance the expression of the Bax gene and increase the Bax/Bcl2 ratio under in vitro decidualization. Additionally, Ido1 can also modulate the expression of the MMP2 gene. In the uterine stromal cells, estrogen and progesterone can stimulate the expression of Ido1. These data indicate that Ido1 may play an important role during mouse decidualization and may be regulated by estrogen and progesterone in the uterine stromal cells.